As voters braved the intense summer heat, Karnataka recorded its best-ever voter turnout of 69.9 per cent for a general election as polling for all the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the state concluded on Tuesday. This bettered the previous highest of 68.8 per cent in 2019 and 67.20 per cent in 2014.
The 14 seats in central and north Karnataka that voted in the third phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024 recorded 70.4 per cent polling, according to data shared by the chief electoral officer (CEO), as of 10 pm on Tuesday. The 14 seats in south Karnataka that voted on April 26 had recorded 69.5 per cent polling.
The turnout in the Kalyan Karnataka region witnessed a decline, with Gulbarga, Raichur, and Bidar recording 61 per cent, 64 per cent, and 63 per cent voting, respectively. On the other hand, the Maharashtra-Karnataka region fared slightly better, with Chikkodi, Belagavi, and Dharwad recording 76 per cent, 71 per cent, and 72 per cent, respectively. Gulbarga had the lowest (61.73 per cent) voter turnout.
The polling in other constituencies was recorded as Bagalkot (70 per cent), Bijapur (64 per cent), Koppal (69 per cent), Bellary (72 per cent), Haveri (76 per cent), Uttara Kannada (73 per cent), Davanagere (76 per cent), and Shimoga (76 per cent).
The voting took place amid heatwave conditions in North Karnataka, with temperatures soaring between 43 and 45 degrees Celsius. The election commission made elaborate arrangements with shelter, drinking water, and other facilities to ease the voting process. According to the CEO, the youth and women voted in record numbers this election.
Most polling booths saw increased voting by women, believed to be an after-effect of the Congress government’s guarantee schemes targeting women
Anitha Kumar, a voter who travelled to Shivamogga from Davanagere to cast her vote, said, “I was surprised to see more women standing in the queue than men this time. This might be because of the guarantee schemes of the Karnataka government which has positively impacted many women in the state. My husband, who voted in Davanagere, also witnessed a similar trend.”
As many as 93 Lok Sabha seats in the county went to poll on Tuesday in the third phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024. As per initial estimates, the polling in this phase was around 64.5 per cent. Voting has now been completed in 282 out of the 543 seats and the remaining seats will go to poll across the next four phases.